Your Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

Questions:

Questions: How do you know when buying a second hand car from a dealer,given that the cars are really shiny, how good the car is.

Answer: A lot of vehicles selling at used car lots have many faults with them, and a fast pro detailer will generallymake these cars look near brand new..The only way to know the condition of any vehicle is to have avehicle inspection carried out by an authorized motor vehicle repairer. One way to tell from a shonky cheap dealer is to try and spot the quality of the buff on the car he is tryingto sell you. If you can see swirl marks left by the detailer he uses……..Turn and RUN!!

Questions: Hi there, just need to ask something quick. What is that rough feeling on top of my paint and how do I getrid of it. Thanks Melanie

Answer: That rough feeling Melanie is contaminants. That tells you your car is in need of treatments. We can takecare of this when your ready, or you can call us and we’ll give you instructions on how to remove it yourself.

Question:Hello Thank you for your time. This question table you’ve got car detailing is so helpful. My cars paint is startingto look like different shades of color from the top to the sides. Is this something serious or can it befixed easily. Cheers Sebastian

Answers:Hi Sebastian. It’s good to see you like it. As for your car, it sounds like it’s fading. No it’s not serious andcan be easily fixed. Give us a call.

Questions:Hello Just wondering, do you have to really wax after you polish. Doesn’t polish protect your car on it’s own.

Thanks Paul

Answers:Polish is exactly what it says it is. It is advisable that you wax after polishing. Waxing is what reallyprotects your car after polishing for 3 plus months. The average person doesn’t know anything aboutpolishes that’s why I advise you wax. However having said that, a lot of polishes do contain polymers which is basically a protection barrierwhich will give you some protection for a given time depending on the use of your car.

Questions:Hello Just wondering, do you have to really wax after you polish. Doesn’t polish protect your car on it’s own.

Thanks Paul

Answers:Polish is exactly what it says it is. It is advisable that you wax after polishing. Waxing is what reallyprotects your car after polishing for 3 plus months. The average person doesn’t know anything aboutpolishes that’s why I advise you wax. However having said that, a lot of polishes do contain polymers which is basically a protection barrierwhich will give you some protection for a given time depending on the use of your car.

Questions:How are you Mate. What’s a good way to get chrome wheels as shiny as possible. I think they’re stained with brake dust andnormal wheel cleaners are not working I was thinking of using Auto sol to shine them up a little but I thought I should ask first.

Answers:Unless you want to eventually strip all the chrome off your wheels, ye sure use Auto sol. If you don’t wantto strip the chrome off your wheels “THEN DON’T” If your sure that you have taken as much dirt off yourwheels as you possibly can, get yourself some Meguiars NXT All Metal Polish. It’s pretty much non abrasive and won’t scratch chrome. AutoSol on the other hand is meant for noncoated metals. It is abrasive. Not for coated metals. I don’t know how long your wheels have had brakedust on them, but brake dust can do serious damage to chrome if left for long periods of time

Questions:Hello Just wondering, do you have to really wax after you polish. Doesn’t polish protect your car on it’s own.

Thanks Paul

Answers:Polish is exactly what it says it is. It is advisable that you wax after polishing. Waxing is what reallyprotects your car after polishing for 3 plus months. The average person doesn’t know anything aboutpolishes that’s why I advise you wax. However having said that, a lot of polishes do contain polymers which is basically a protection barrierwhich will give you some protection for a given time depending on the use of your car.

Questions:Hi, I’m confused about paint protection. Is it really worth while doing it? I am just about to take delivery of a new car and the dealer is pushing their paint protection for a small fortune. Is paint protection a waste of money? I’ve always cleaned my cars at least once a week, is this enough?

Cheers Drew

Answers:Hi there Drew

No, paint protection is not a waste of time. If you want your <span “>car to be easy to wash and give it some protection against the elements you really do need it.Paint dies over time if it’s not protected. Even if you do wash once a week. It’s during the week thedamage happens. That’s where you need protection. It can get really expensive to restore it after wards ifyou don’t have it. If you apply protectants every few months, your car will always have a nice lustre aboutit as it has the necessary oils to keep it alive What the dealers are trying to do is sell it at a ridiculous charge. Don’t believe them if they tell you it willprotect your paint for five years. That is a myth. The very best protectants in most cases depending onhow your vehicle is driven will probably at best get you anywhere from 6-10 months protection. I don’t know what exactly they are charging you, but I’m assuming it will be anything up to two grand.

That’s not cheap just for paint protection. After market paint protection that is supplied in today’s market is just as good if not better than what the dealers offer. What you need to understand is that what your getting is just protection for what they are charging you, but your car does need paint protection.

The sort of money the dealers are charging you, gets your surfaces also pre-treated for a much better appearance with protection if you deal with someone from after market services. The dealers are just protection. Let me know if you need anything else.

Questions:Hi I have a 1998 Honda Civic 3 door hatch RED IN COLOR which its paint has faded pretty severely, I was wondering roughly how much it would cost to rejuvenate this vehicle, and will you come out to me, if not where are you locatedThanksMick

Answers:Hi there Mick Faded red Honda. I wouldn’t worry too much Mick. Unless it’s a very porous looking faded Red, chances are it can be saved. I can’t really quote without looking, but being a Honda Civic which is a reasonably small car, if the fade isn’t too severe a couple of hundred or there about should somewhat cover it, if it’s just the fade you want removed. I am located in Campbelltown. I can look at the car either next Monday, or possibly earlier if I can call you on short notice. It won’t take that long to remove fade off a small car so if your willing to travel it should not consume your whole day if you can get here early. I’m sorry I’m not mobile. I often find I always have the correct working environment when the cars I work on are always indoors. I would only be mobile in the most extreme of cases. Not only that but the customer car photos also prove the cars are done by me because they are taken in the same workshop. Not in some driveway or car park. I know that this also costs me customers, but I’d much rather not have customer cars exposed to open atmospheres. Let me know if I can be of any further assistance. Regards Dr Buff

Questions :Hi, I just picked up my new 2009 min cooper S with an aatro black metallic paint. Looked great when i left the dealership in the dark. But a few days later when it was sunny, i noticed large snake like shapes on the panels and door. Did a little research and learned they were called hologram trails. My question is: can these be removed? I’m taking it back this week to have them do whatever they have to, but id like to know if this is just going to mask them and re appear down the line. In turn, keeping me doing this every time.So do these actually vanish for good? And was my paint damaged because of these holograms??Thanks!!

Answers: Hi there Constantino A brand new car with holograms. That’s disappointing. Chances are that they will try to hide the holograms. Technically speaking your paint is somewhat damaged but it’s only very marginal. The reason you have holograms is because they used an abrasive or cutting compound of some grade and did not finish it off correctly. Black is the hardest colour to work with because it consumes large amounts of time and chances are they are not going to invest the time to correct it, because they don’t know how, or they just won’t. The Nissan Tida on my website was also in the same boat. He didn’t have holograms, he had swirl marks. You should have seen them. I couldn’t believe the dealership inflicted the damage. You have to remember they have your money already. It’s more than likely they will use fillers that will last a few months just to keep you quiet. Don’t go to coffee car washes or use cheap charging mobile detailers in the hope to get it fixed. I have to be honest with you, and that is right now you are stuck in a bit of a rut. They have inflicted the damage and you need to get them to remove it.

Hope this helps Cheers Pete.

Dr Buff

Thanks for the response.

I appreciate the time. Is there anything i should know going in? Meaning, should i be aware of certain polishes they should not use? One more thing. Just generally. How long should i expect them to work on the one side of the car to make it right again? They said it was going to be about a half hour and haven’t even seen the damage. Just stated that over the phone.

Constantino

Hi Constantino.

Yes there is one thing you can tell them. Tell them not to use paint fillers to fill in the holograms, because you’ll be back if the holograms come back. This will put the pressure on them to fix it correctly. None of these bastards use descent products. I can’t understand why they would even use abrasives on a new car when there is no damage. I can’t tell how bad it is because I can’t see it, there fore I can’t tell you how long it will take. I don’t like the sound of half hour. Nothing that I have ever seen which is good was ever achieved in half an hour. Did you ask them for paint protection? Technically speaking they now should be using different lighting on the car to try and spot the damage. They are not going to do that in half hour. For me to remove the swirls off the Tida it took a few hours using different forms of light. I had to view the car the next day under sunlight as well before I handed it back. Not the easiest of jobs. Especially when the car is black.

Questions:Hi, I have a 2 year old black Lexus IS250. In the last 3 months I’ve noticed water etchings on the paint. I’ve been told by a few people that this is caused by acid rain. I’ve asked Lexus about this and they stated this can only be fixed with a re-spray. I also took the car to a car paint protection place and they were not able to remove the etching. * From your experience can these water marks caused by acid rain be removed? * Is there a treatment to the paint that can be used to prevent this? * If it is possible to get fixed is it a problem which would re-occur again?

Thanks in advance. Rohan

Answers: Hi there Rohan I usually do a lot of Rexes which come straight of the skid pans. These skid pans usually contain lime which etches really deep. These are quite costly jobs because in most cases cutting is involved. Acid rain if left for long periods of time can etch quite deep. I’ve done lots of cars in the past because of other issues and in all cases from what I can remember acid rain has always come off with the rest of it. This is only because of the processes involved. Are you local? I may be able to help you, but I need to get the buff to your cars paint. I won’t know for sure till I try a few compounds.The worst thing about your car is that it’s black. Everything shows. Restoring black paint is not cheap, and certainly not easy. It can break the thousand + dollar barrier depending on various factors. The Tida on the customer cars page took 12 back breaking hours using different forms of light and compounds. Then the car had to be viewed in the sunlight before being handed back the following day. I have another customer turning up tomorrow morning with a Merc. I’ll be available to look at the car on Saturday, or tomorrow if you want, or give me a call to arrange a time. Don’t believe anyone that tells you it needs to be re sprayed. I don’t believe that’s the case. I’ve saved a lot of cars from resprays. In fact, I’ve saved quite a few disasters from resprays. You try the most cost effective methods first before you resort to re spraying.

Give me a call

Cheers Dr Buff.

Have a look the comments

which I recently found posted on the Holden forums about car paint protection from a customer who recently purchased car paint protection for his new Holden. It is stories like this that upset me.Being an avid paint correction lover, I often search the web for interesting forums and I couldn’t help but post this story. It’s also not the first time I have heard of a Dealer damaging paint work on a new vehicle. Paint protection is not a waste of time. This Dealer used an abrasive instead of a paint protection application, and this customers new Holden is now damaged. Also, the customer is under the impression that it is paint protection which has caused the damage. It saddens me that there are so many people out there who don’t have a clue with what they are doing, even as far as car dealers themselves Comments listed below

Hi ppl,

When I bought my first new car, being a VXSS, the paint work was gleaming in the showroom. The phantom black looked stunning, with a really deep colour and beautiful shine. So when the dealer suggested I opt for paint protection I was very keen to preserve the cars beautiful paint work through all those steaming hot and sunny days the car would be parked at a beach car park. I was under the impression, nieve i know, that the paint protection would be a clear coat sprayed over the car. Instead, it is actually a gritty cut-and-polish-like cream that is applied over the car by hand! When my car was delivered to me the paint work was ruined. It was full of permanent streaks and in some areas the streaks were in the pattern of the fingers that had rubbed the cream into the pristine paint work. So much for that new car shine! The car looked horrible in direct sunlight compared to what it looked like before the paint protection. I even thought of handing back the car and demanding another one. Now I can spot the cars with paint protection from a mile away. Needless to say, my new VZ SS will not have paint protection. Forget the cost…that is not the issue.

Questions: Hi, I HAVE RECENTLY APPLIED A PAINT SEALANT WHICH CONTAINS PTFE NAMED COUNTERACT TO MY BRAND NEW NAVARA, WHEN I WAS LOOKING AT MY CAR IN THE SUNLIGHT I NOTICED A LOT OF SWIRL MARKS,WHICH I SUSPECT WERE PUT IN THE PAINT WORK AT THE DEALERS YARD WHEN THEY DETAILED THE CAR. MY ? TO YOU IS THIS,BECA– USE I HAVE SEALED OVER THE SWIRLS I AM WANTING TO START AGAIN BY REMOVING THE PTFE SEALANT. HOW DO YOU SUGGEST I BEGIN?IS THERE A CLEANER THAT WILL DO THIS? I HOPE YOU CAN HELP, THANKS- IAN.

Answers Hi Ian

I am not familiar with this product. However, The product that I use can be removed with Grease and wax remover. You can try that, but having said that, If you try to remove the swirls off your vehicle,it is more than likely that you are going to strip all the PTFE off anyway. Most abrasives will remove protectants from a car’s paint job.

Questions:I have a VT Commodore which I purchased when it was 2 years old. I believe it may have had paint protection done at time of sale when new as there is this clear film now peeling off the roof and boot. Can this be fixed without great expense either by removing paint protection and redoing or should I get car resprayed. It’s a reliable vehicle and I am reluctant to get rid of it as it has served me so well. Look forward to hearing your thoughts.

Ray

Answers:Hi Ray

It sounds more like your clear coat is peeling away Ray, but I wouldn’t know for sure until I look at it. You will need a re-spray if the clearcoat has peeled

Questions :Dr Buff, I have a 2009 Black Nissan Murano. I paid to have fifth dimension paint protection applied in May 2009 (rip off to say the least). I was not quick enough to wash off bug splatter and bird droppings. I only use Meguiars product and proceeded to polish them out (by hand). However, being inexperienced with Black paint, I now have polish marks all over. What would be an estimated cost (given that you have not seen it), to have the car done by yourselves to bring it back to a mirror finish?

Phil Rooty Hill

Answers:Hey Phil

I’m sorry to hear you’ve run into some trouble with your black car. I need to know what materials you used on your vehicle to try and remove the damage or give you some idea about cost. Paint Protection. Paint protection does work Phil, but many people are under the misguided assumption that once you apply it, you never have to maintain the car again. That’s clearly not the case. There is no such thing as non care paint protection. You are more or less being told what you want to hear. I sell paint protection, but the vehicles still do need to be maintained as far as regular washing and checks. Paint protection buys you time to remove bird droppings and what not. It doesn’t mean you can leave bird or bat droppings on your car for say, four weeks. Animal droppings are highly acidic. They will eat through anything if given enough time. Paint protection buys you enough time to remove stains. If you see any stains on your car, remove them at your earliest convenience. This is where paint protection helps. If you didn’t have it, even in a short space of time, especially on a hot day, bird droppings would more than likely etch into your paint. If I can be of any further assistance Phil, please don’t hesitate to contact me. Cheers Peter Dr Buff www.paintcorrections.com

Questions :Thank you for your prompt reply Peter. I used the following Meguiars products; Washed the car with Soft Wash, then used the step 1 Paint Cleaner followed by Deep Crystal Wet Look. All done in full shade and in the cool of the morning.

Phil

Answers :I really don’t understand why you would have polish marks over your surfaces with Meguiars products, unless your surfaces are heavily contaminated ,or you used excessive amounts of compound and you didn’t allow to dry After all, your not exactly using poor quality products. If your car appears to have something similar to streaking, try giving it another wash, and then go over with quick detailer to remove excessive amounts of any possible compounds. Let me know how it goes, other wise you may need to bring the vehicle here so I can have a look.